Backlash (2006)
Backlash (2006) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by WWE for Extreme (WWEFE), which took place on April 29, 2006 at the Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky. It was the eighth event under the Backlash name and featured wrestlers and other talent that performed on the RAW brand. It also has the distinction of being the first PPV aired under the For Extreme banner, and the first to be aired on a Saturday. Four professional wrestling matches were scheduled on the event's card, which saw two main events. The first of these main events was a Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship, which saw Randy Orton defeat challengers John Cena and Edge to retain his title. The other main event featured Triple H take on The Undertaker, which Triple H won. From the two scheduled bouts on the undercard, one received more promotion than the other. The match was a number one contender's match match for the WWE Championship, featuring Raven and Christian Cage, contested in a Bowery Death Cage Match, which Raven won. The event received 273,000 pay-per-view buys, which was more than the previous year's event received. This contributed to WWE's pay-per-view revenue increasing by $4.3 million from the previous year. When the event was released on DVD, it peaked at second on Billboard's DVD sales chart for recreational sports. Background Backlash featured professional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds, plots, and storylines that were played out on RAW. Wrestlers portrayed a villain or a hero as they followed a series of events that built tension, and culminated into a wrestling match or series of matches. All wrestlers were from WWE's RAW brand—a storyline division in which WWE employees are assigned to a television program of the same name. , who competed in the Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship]] The main event at Backlash was a Triple Threat match, a standard wrestling match involving three wrestlers for the WWE Championship between Randy Orton, John Cena, and Edge. The storyline started the RAW after WrestleMania 22, when Randy Orton won the vacated WWE Championship over John Cena, Edge, and Kane. Cena had been stripped of the championship due to the For Extreme Reboot, and protested the situation. In response, a one-on-one match was scheduled for Backlash. Leading up to the event, Edge pinned Cena cleanly, earning himself a spot in the match as well. ]] Prior to the For Extreme reboot, Triple H had been portrayed as a villain on screen, having just faced John Cena at WrestleMania 22. Losing to Cena via submission, combined with Mr. McMahon’s speech that night, had caused Triple H to reevaluate his career. The Monday after, Triple H reunited with Shawn Michaels to reform D-Generation X and capture the World Tag titles. It was later announced on wwefe.com that Triple H would face The Undertaker at Backlash. Another rivalry heading into the PPV was Raven versus Christian Cage. Both Raven and Cage had staked claims to a shot at the WWE Championship, causing the two to butt heads in the weeks leading to the event. On an episode of RAW, Raven challenged Christian to a match for the number one contendership in a match of Raven's own creation, the Bowery Death Cage match. Christian accepted, although their rivalry would cause both men to lose to D-Generation X the night before the PPV. Event Before the event aired live on pay-per-view, Goldust defeated Rob Conway in a match that aired on Heat. Goldust won the match after a powerslam, a move where the wrestler performing the slam falls face-down on top of his opponent. Preliminary matches The first match of the event was between Looney Lane and Lita for the Women‘s Championship. Lita had attempted several times to win the championship off Lane prior to the event, and this was the final match to their rivalry. Lita had the advantage early on in the match, using quick punches and kicks to wear down the champion. However, Lane whipped Lita into a corner and connected with her finishing maneuver, a modified hurricanrana she called the Looneycanrana, off the top rope. Looney Lane pinned Lita for the win. Next was a Bowery Death Cage match between Raven and Christian Cage, with the winner to receive a future WWE Championship match. Raven had a trash can in hand before Christian entered, but Cage managed to get the can out of Raven’s hands, and had the advantage until Raven retrieved the trash can. Raven proceeded to strike Christian repeatedly with the trash can, before placing it over Christian’s head and smashing it with a steel folding chair. Raven controlled the match for several minutes, until Christian came back with a Tigerbomb, a variation of the powerbomb, performed off the top rope. Christian then used a ladder to work Raven over, but Raven reversed a power bomb attempt, knocking Christian into the ladder. Raven then used a variety of weapons on Christian, including laying thumbtacks out on the canvas. Cage returned offense by hitting his finishing maneuver called The Unprettier, an inverted face buster, onto the thumbtacks. The ladder was set up in the ring, with both Raven and Christian fighting on top of it until Raven hit his own finisher, the Raven Effect, off the ladder and through two tables. Raven pinned Christian for the win. Main event matches The third match was a singles match between The Undertaker and Triple H, who was accompanied by Shawn Michaels. Michaels and Triple H openly taunted Undertaker prior to the match, using sophomoric humor often associated with their first run as D-Generation X. Both DX and The Undertaker played faces in the match, creating a back-and-forth environment where both Triple H and The Undertaker were cheered. Unertaker had the advantage in the opening of the match, using punches and submission holds. The match continued outside the ring, where Triple H shifted the momentum by throwing Undertaker into the steel steps at ringside. When they returned to the ring, Triple H targeted Undertaker’s head, and countered an attempted Tombstone Piledriver (Undertaker’s finishing maneuver). Every time Triple H went to pin The Undertaker, he would sit up theatrically, one of his signature moves. However, Triple H hit him with the Pedigree, a double-underhook face buster. After two such maneuvers, Triple H pinned Undertaker for the win. The main event was the Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship between champion Randy Orton, Edge, and John Cena. As the match began, Edge failed to enter, seeming to imply the match would go on as originally booked, a singles match. However, as Orton and Cena wore each other out, Edge came out of the crowd to interject himself in the match. During the match, Edge missed a spear, instead hitting the acting official, Chad Patton. Lita, who was in a relationship with Edge at the time, came to ringside and handed Edge a screwdriver, which he teased using on Orton. However, Orton hit him with an RKO, and pinned Edge as the official was waking up to win the match and retain the WWE Championship. Aftermath The next night on ‘’RAW’’, Raven cashed in his title shot, pinning Randy Orton to start his first reign as WWE Champion. Edge went on to feud with Jeff Hardy, who had just been drafted from the ECW brand, over the Intercontinental Championship. Triple H would feud with Randy Orton, while building up D-Generation X by recruiting Jeff Hardy and Ashley Massaro. The group would taunt and goad Orton, culminating in a Steel Cage match on the May 29 episode of RAW, which Triple H won to challenge Raven’s WWE Championship at Vengeance, alongside Edge. Reception The event received 273,000 pay-per-view buys, which was more buys than the previous year's event received, however, the event made $19.9 million in revenue, which was less than the previous year's revenue of $21.6 million. The event was released on DVD on May 30, 2006 by Sony Music Entertainment and reached second on Billboard's DVD Sales Chart for recreational sports during the week of June 24, 2006. Results Category:2006 Category:Backlash Category:Pay-Per-View Events